Emotions still spin for Ribau after winning debut with Spitfires

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Emotions were still swirling for Nathan Ribau on Thursday when he first took to the ice for the Windsor Spitfires.

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Just two days had passed since the 19-year-old defender was traded from the Sudbury Wolves to the Spitfires and just 24 hours since Ribau made a brief stop over as his family’s home in Oakville before heading to Windsor.

“I’m still processing it a bit, but it’s tough,” said Ribau, who received an assist on his debut when the Spitfires beat Owen Sound Attack 7-4 at the WFCU Center. “It’s hockey and it’s a business at the end of the day.”

Ribau appeared to have cemented his place with the Wolves, who named him alternate captain this season, but opted to move him and a third-round draft pick in 2025 to Windsor to land 19-year-old defender Dylan Robinson.

“I’m excited to have him in the lineup,” said Spitfires head coach Marc Savard. “He is more of a type of closure, a type of penalties and a type that is going to kill many minutes.”

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Before the deal, Ribau had only been to Windsor once. That was as a rookie for the Wolves in October 2019 in a game that featured a spirited fight between him and now-Spitfires captain Will Cuylle.

“We will laugh a lot at that,” Ribau said.

Don’t be fooled by Ribau’s 6-foot-1, 185-pound height. While the 6-foot-6, 206-pound Robinson is physically bigger, he plays a more offensive game, while the Spitfires believe Ribau will bring more courage to the lineup.

“It’s good, it’s solid, it takes the body and those are elements that we are missing,” Savard said.

More than a few players in the Eastern Conference have tested Ribau’s ability to hit on open ice or his pride in defeating an opponent on the boards.

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“It’s a big part of my game,” Ribau said. “When I play that physical way, I can get into a rhythm and help.

“OHL is getting more and more skilled, but I think (a great success is) a great change in momentum. Just the ability to get the guys out of the game and cement something in their mind when they fall off the wall on my side that they have to keep their heads up. “

Earlier this season, he also showed an offensive side with one goal and four points in six games before the Windsor deal.

“I also like to contribute offensively and I’m off to a good start,” said Ribau, who wears the No. 8 previously worn by Connor Corcoran. “I like to play a good two-way game and (the offensive side) has been something I wanted to show.

“It was difficult (as a rookie) because (Sudbury) was older at the rear and you had to fight for the ice. I think that just with the opportunity that I had this year, and with a lot of work that I did in the summer, I played my game in two directions and it helped me to contribute offensively ”.

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One disappointment for Ribau is that he won’t get a chance to play a game again at Sudbury this season. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, the Spitfires do not play a team in the Eastern Conference.

“That is a difficult question,” Ribau said. “It would have been nice to play on that track one more time.

“It was difficult to leave those guys. We were close and I’m going to miss them. “

For now, he just wants to get in on the action and thinks the Spitfires who play three games in three nights, with a stop at Kitchener on Friday and Owen Sound on Saturday, will really help him adjust.

“I also hope to get off to a good start at Windsor,” Ribau said. “With three (games) in three (days), I think it will be a good distraction. I will be on the road trip and I think it will be a fun experience. “

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Spits out bits

Rookie goalie Kyle Downey made his first Ontario Hockey League start for the Spitfires on Thursday. Downey, 17, was the first goalkeeper selected in the 2020 OHL Draft.

Meanwhile, Russian forward Avval Baisov, who injured his leg in the team’s last exhibition match, also played his first OHL game on Thursday. He was Windsor’s first-round pick in this year’s Canadian Hockey League Import Draft.

With eight defenders on the roster, Spitfires’ rookie Bronson Ride was a healthy scratch alongside James Jodoin on Thursday.

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